There Is No Paradise Where I Ran Away To (14 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 25

The place Edwin headed to was the lake he visited every night out of habit. At dusk, the lakeshore was a breathtaking sight—reflections of the sunset shimmered across the water’s surface, scattering crimson light through the air as if the entire world were ablaze.

What would you look like, swimming freely in such a sublime scene?

Vivian appeared late at night and boldly plunged into the lake’s embrace. Without a hint of shame, she revealed her body and played upon the water’s surface—sometimes humming a tune under her breath, sometimes weeping, and sometimes submerging herself beneath the water for so long she didn’t resurface for a while.

She swam like the master of the lake, her body gleaming like a silver statue.

If a passing traveler had happened upon Vivian, surely they would never have been able to leave. Entranced by the beauty of a golden mermaid, their eyes would burn red as they tried desperately to capture her image upon the water.

I had thought her smile in the portrait would be the last I’d ever see. Yet Vivian in the water was free, and the smile of a woman unbound shone with a radiant clarity like glistening droplets.

When the golden mermaid I so deeply admired floats up helplessly—and when I myself reach that conclusion—I suppose I’ll remember her very vividly.

The sound of ripples parting at her long, slender fingertips; the playful giggle when something tickled her; the childlike sob as tears fell one by one.

Perhaps the sounds you left behind after vanishing from my hands will linger with a deep resonance and lingering regret.

Every night, Edwin stood on the dock where Vivian used to stand, gazing down at the lake’s fiery surface. He never once imagined that the missing Ebelline might be beneath the water.

He had an idea of where Vivian Ebelline might be—and he was fairly certain his guess was correct. And yet, he still came to the lake, clinging to a sliver of hope.

A foolish hope—that because she loved this lake, she couldn’t resist its call and had rushed here in the night. An utterly baseless wish, clung to despite knowing better.

Edwin turned around and waited for time to pass in his study. The sunset had long faded, replaced by an unpleasant evening as dull and bruised as a wound. Before long, Abernathy arrived, having searched in vain for Ebelline.

“Miss Ebelline doesn’t appear to be in the mansion. I asked Miss Windler as well, and she said she hasn’t seen her since this morning. Since nobody saw Miss Ebelline leave the mansion, it seems she slipped out secretly.”

Vivian Ebelline had run away.

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